White Lies

We hear that the confusion around who happens to be the real boss in Islamabad has become a major problem for protocol managers all around. PPP ministers willing to stand on one leg waiting for Asif Zardari are reluctant to follow even the prescribed protocol for PM Gilani. This was quite apparent during the Washington visit. According to a senior diplomat in attendance the haughtiness of one minister in the entourage was so obvious that it caused some awkward moments. Once a candidate for PM, this minister continued to demonstrate pomposity and discard the manual on protocol. When asked by diplomats to assemble in the hotel lobby before departing for the day’s scheduled meetings, the minister would curtly reply, “let me know when the PM reaches the lobby and then I will come down.”

However, the PM fared better with the khaki top brass. When on his next foreign visit, this time to Sri Lanka, he was given a full send-off by the three services chiefs and the Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee at Chaklala Airport. On his return there was a softer welcome with just members of the PM Secretariat turning up to welcome him back.

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